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Hindusim
Hinduism '''Hinduism is the worlds 3rd most popular religion and one of the oldest.It is dominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Unlike most other religions, Hinduism hasn't got a founder, a date of origin, or a single scripture, and no commonly agreed rules of teachings. It is over 4000 years old. Most Hindus worship one or more God, believe in reincarnation, value the practice of meditation, and observe festive holidays like Diwali and Holi. it is practised by 80% of the Indian public (750 people).''' '''Hindu’s have many festivals; here is one of a popular festival: ''' Diwali is a Hindu festival of lights. It is a popular festival in South Asia. This occasion is celebrated by Jains and Sikhs. The festival lasts for five days and because of fireworks, lights and sweets involved in it, it is a good favourite for kids. The Festival celebrates the victory of good over evil, light over darkness and knowledge over ignorance. This is a useful website to find out what Hindus believe in: http://www.arcworld.org/faiths.asp?pageID=42 '''Worship''' '''Worship at Home''' A majority of Hindus have a shrine at home where the pray and make offerings. Anything can be a shrine: a room, a small altar, or just some pictures or statues of the God. Families will often worship together. Rituals( religious ceremony) should be performed three times a day. Most Hindus wear sacred thread (over the left shoulder and hanging to the right hip) when they worship. This is cotton for the Brahmin (priest) , hemp for the Kshatriya (ruler) and wool for the vaishya (merchants). '''Temple Worship''' A Hindu temple has different parts that represent different spiritual and symbolic meanings * The central shrine is the heart of the worshipper * The tower represents the flight of the spirit to heaven * A priest may read, or more usually recite, the Vedas to the assembled worshippers, but any "twice-born" Hindu can perform the reading of prayers and mantras Religious Rites Hindu religious rites are classified into three categories: * Nitya ** Nitya rituals are performed daily and consist in offerings made at the home shrine or performing puja to the family deities. * Naimittika ** Naimittika rituals are important but only occur at certain times during the year, such as celebrations of the festivals, thanksgiving and so on. * Kamya ** Kamya are rituals which are "optional" but highly desirable. Pilgrimage is one such. '''Kolams ''' '''Kolams are a form of art. They are series of patterns and textures made from colourful leaves, flowers, rice, spices, chalk, flour and more. Hindu women and girls tend to do kolams in there spare time. They are made all over India and other parts of Asia. They are made for fun and for decorations during special events such as:''' *[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diwali Diwali] *[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thai_Pongal Pongal] *[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kavadi Kavadi] *[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holi Holi] (click on the festivals and there will be links to give you more info on the topics) '''''Kolams are thought to bring prosperity to homes. Unfortunately, people walk all over the kolams and the rain and the dirt washes them away by the next day.''''' Here is a video ''''' '''''http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pp59n0So-XE&safe=active ''' Kolam 3.jpg Kolam 2.jpg Kolam 1.jpg ''' ''' ''' ''' Kolam 3.jpg Kolam 2.jpg Kolam 1.jpg '''